It was just yesterday that Partners Healthcare dropped its bid to acquire Care New England, following a call from Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo for the state’s two largest providers and Brown University to convene talks about merging.
Those talks have now begun. Raimondo urged the parties to move quickly toward some agreement, and the leaders have echoed that sentiment.
“The shorter time frame the better,” Care New England CEO said. “It’s time for us to move on. We’ve got to know if there’s a solution here that’s viable. If it is, we want to get on with it. If it’s not, we want to develop our other options.”
One of those “other options” might be some other sort of future deal with Partners. In a statement, Partners says that although it is withdrawing its application to acquire Care New England, it “stands ready to reengage at the appropriate time, especially with an integrated Rhode Island system.”
A spokesman for the governor said representatives from Lifespan, Care New England and Brown will continue to meet throughout the summer.
The deal has the potential to transform healthcare in Rhode Island. Together, Lifespan and Care New England control the vast majority of the hospital market in the state.